Month: December 2017

The financial benefits of becoming a travelling nurse cannot be overstated but it also depends on how financially savvy you are are. Becoming a travelling nurse affords one the opportunity to earn a lot in a very short period of time depending on how far you are willing to travel. With a travelling nurse, and depending on how your travelling nurse company operates, you can either get paid the stipend or get affordable housing or if you choose to travel to a city where you have friends or family, then you can easily pocket the housing allowance.

Nurses are becoming vocal and increasingly independent on how we want our professional lives to be. More nurses are getting into the driver’s seat and steering the course of their careers.

Five Benefits of Becoming a Travelling Nurse

1. You get to pick your location- As long as you are able to get the license of the state that you plan on travelling to, it becomes very easy to travel anywhere. Even more better for you is if you hold a compact RN license- the opportunities are plentiful.
2. More Experience: Imagine having to walk into a completely different settings with different equipment, culture, and PEOPLE! It’s almost a freak out, right? Wrong! As you take on more travel opportunities, the more adept you will become in communication and managing different experiences that you come across.
3. Financial Gain- The financial gain is not to be underestimated especially when you are willing to pick overtime here and there. It does add up! The main thing is to be sure not to spend it all but to be able to save and then invest it into a good opportunity, in this way you savings is not lying dormant in a bank somewhere but is working for you.
4. Networking- With being a travelling nurse, you get to network and meet new people and opportunities everyday. Who knows? You just might come across one that would be too hard to resist. Put yourself out there and get to meet people and let them meet you and always remember to put your best foot forward.
5. See New Places- If you are considering a relocation, a travelling opportunity allows you to travel to that place to check it out WHILE still earning income. What is there not to love?

But before you do go on your first assignment, make sure to research all the companies and find one that best meets your needs. Ask friends, google it up…just as much as you want to invest your skills and expertise in travelling, you need to make sure that you find a company that does likewise. Travel nurse companies are in existence because of nurses- don’t let anyone short change you!

Four ways to create a positive orientation experience is a guideline targeted towards employee retention. It is a very true saying that, “knowledge is power” but we need to realize that not all persons are good at impacting knowledge.Knowledge does not translate into being a good instructor!

A good orientation can make or break a new employee- they already have enough to learn, don’t make an already hard situation even harder.

Four Ways to Create a Positive Orientation Experience for Your New Employee

1. A Good Preceptor- Consider having your preceptors as being voluntary with adequate compensation. Plan ahead with the preceptor, make sure it is acceptable with them. Some people love to teach and make excellent preceptors and best of all are willing, it is these people that should make preceptors.
2. Make it formal- The best way to make sure that learning/techniques are standardized is to make certain that it is written down. The guidelines have to be reproducible every single time- this best helps new employees on a formal policy or technique to refer too when they are independent and questions arise for them.
3. The Experience- A good and solid foundation is the best for any new employee- it creates a positive experience and such employees are better firmly grounded and willing to withstand difficulties within the workplace should those happen. A positive past experience (orientation) will make the employee better willing to be loyal to you.
4. Get Feedback- Make it a point to formally and informally engage with your new employees. Ask them about their orientation experience, make changes when needed but keep confidential whatever is shared in secret with you otherwise the trust will be broken.

Hello Nurse Consultant,

I am a fairly new grad from nursing school. I have been at my current employment for 15 months now but it is slowly killing me. Before this job and maybe even nursing school, I like to think that I was a well-adjusted person but ever since I have been at this job, I continually feel a sense of anxiety before my shifts. The constant fault finding, snitching on my work etc is getting me depressed. I go home most days almost tearful and when I am at home, all I think about is work and my anxiety about what other “problems” my co-workers may have dug up regarding my job performance. Typing this makes me feel like crying- my family is loving but I am unable to make them understand. I don’t want to be a quitter but should I just quit this job and find another one?

Depressed Nurse

Dear Depressed Nurse,

I am sorry to read the experience that you are going through. No one should ever have to feel anxious about going in to work. Here is my response to you; well done on getting your nursing degree and job. There’s something special in you because you accomplished these yourself. Understand that you are new and also learning, so try not to put undue pressure on yourself to be the best.  Not all human beings are in this life to find fault- find that one person at you work-place so you have an ally.

Are any of your co-workers concerns valid? If yes, see what you can do differently; if no, ignore their comments. Make sure you follow nursing guidelines and keep your employee handbook close to you, to ensure  that you are doing what you should. Changing jobs is not always the best in a situation like this because it may end up being the same at the next job and you will feel better for having dealt with it.

Below are helpful links to dealing with depression

• Depression Help

Every company is looking for great talent but not every company is willing to actually do the leg work and invest in the necessary things to recruit and keep these talents. The best hiring decisions that I have made have been those where I went with my gut instincts and really looked at the candidate in question and not just their resume.

Five Tips on Hiring Right

1. Become a conversationalist- Keep your company structured interview by all means, but make sure that you have a conversation with the candidate. When you provide a relaxed atmosphere, candidates will usually relax as well and open up to you ( both for good and bad). Stay non-judgmental but observe and make a note of what you observe because it would greatly help you in  your final selection
2. Look out for passion- You need the passion for the candidate to succeed. By no means, should the candidate be a martyr but they need to have some sort of passion for the job they applied for otherwise you will find that at the first sign of a hint of difficulty, these employees will usually bail out on you and will not be as invested or committed to their work, after all it is only a pay check.
3. Communicate your vision to the candidate- No candidate who has applied for a position in your company or organization is too small. Whatever role they play contributes to the whole of your organization. Let that candidate know how their roles add to the company’s visions. A committed and passionate employee will usually step up to play their role in helping your company achieve its visions.
4. Coach your hiring managers- By no means do you wants automated zombies doing interviews, but if you want to hire right, make sure that your hiring managers understand to add warmth and a personal touch to their interviews. It goes a long way in calming a nervous candidate and building a positive relationship. If you potential employee gets a bad vibe from the interviewer, chances are that relationship will only get worse from there.
5. Create an experience for your candidates- Like it or not, potential employees/ job applicants are also your customers. What experience you provide during your interview through hiring/on-boarding phase says a lot about your goals and priorities. So create an experience for them- never forget, you are a marketer at All times.

The Perks of Hiring Right

-When you hire right, you won’t have to go through the process of interviewing job applicants constantly.

-When you hire right, your work-place becomes fun where your employees look forward to going to everyday

-When you hire right, the work-place becomes positive and ideas thrive in an atmosphere of positivity

The great thing about hiring right is that the results are reflected positively on your bank statement. If you are willingly and do the heavy loading, in terms of hiring right, proper coaching and investing in your employees, you will reap the rewards of a committed staff who will go the extra mile in making sure that your customers are satisfied.